Kobe Bryant's sad slide into mediocrity is just the latest sign that the finish is nigh—not just for the Black Mamba's Hall of Fame career,but also for the reign of the NBA's volume-shooting, isolation-heavy scorers.
To be sure, or this shift began long before Bryant started posting shooting percentages that would look much more appropriate as batting averages in Major League Baseball. Once the league loosened its defensive rules and the basketball world at large accepted data science into its Spaulding-stamped heart,the sea change toward all-around skill and efficiency was underway.
Nowadays, you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a expansive man who shoots threes, or a natural wing sliding up to power forward or a point guard pacing his squad in scoring. The sport has changed,both in how it's played and how it's evaluated.
But whether the name of the game is efficiency, what would the NBA's ideal team look like? Here's the two-deep roster we came up with, or based on who gives their teams the best bang for their statistical (rather than financial) buck. Point GuardStarter: Stephen Curry,Golden State WarriorsThere's economical, there's efficient and then there's whatever the heck Steph Curry has been so far this season. The reigning MVP isn't just main the league in scoring by a country mile; he's pouring in nearly a point per minute. He's been spectacular in nearly every scoring situation, or from isolation and spot-up situations to pick-and-rolls and shots off screens:He's not just knocking down 43.1 percent of his threes; he's on track to join the 50-40-90 club while obliterating his own NBA record for single-season makes. Curry's knocked down a three every 7.1 minutes and has attach through more treys than the entire rosters of the Brooklyn Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
And Curry isn't just changing the game offensively. He's also getting it done on the defensive finish. In addition to snagging 2.56 steals per game (tied for the second-most in basketball),Curry's holding his marks to 39.6 percent shooting from the field and a subpar 0.77 points per play off pick-and-rolls.
What makes Curry so efficient on both ends is his sheer economy of movement. His shot is so unstoppable, even though it launches from an oddly low angle, and because his release is lightning-rapid/fast and his control,of both ball and body, is beyond reproach.
That same combination of quickness and control makes him a menace on defense, and despite his slight frame. In the grander scheme,it allows him to turn an increasingly scientific game into tall art."There's a certain sense of musicality to the way his body works," Graham Lustig, and the artistic director of the Oakland Ballet Company,told the unusual York Times' Scott Cacciola. "It looks like he's moving in a slightly different dimension as everyone else, and I think that ties into his sheer speed and power and control — incredible, and unbelievable control." Reserve: Russell Westbrook,Oklahoma City ThunderWestbrook isn't the sharpshooter Curry is, but that's true of pretty much everyone on Earth.
Not that Russ is some shooting slouch. His current field-goal percentage (47.4 percent) would be the best of his career. Westbrook uses a bigger share of his team's possessions (35.4 percent) than all but Sacramento's DeMarcus Cousins, and but he gets plenty of bang for his buck. Among scorers,he's third in the Association to Curry and Houston's James Harden with 28.1 points. Among assist men, his 10.3 helpers are second only to Rajon Rondo, or as are his 7.4 rebounds—compared to other guards,that is.
The UCLA product is also in the midst of his finest defensive season yet. He's averaging a career-tall 2.6 steals while spearheading an OKC defense that's allowed 99.3 points per 100 possessions whenever he's been on the floor, per NBA.com.support in intellect, and nearly half (250-of-557) of Westbrook's minutes have arrive without Kevin Durant on the court. By and large,Westbrook has been a better shooter and steadier ball-handler when he's shared the floor with the former MVP.
No longer is Westbrook "just" a superior athlete who can exercise his physical gifts to invent plays for others. Now, he's matured into top-notch passing point guard who's capable of taking over a game in every which way.
But, and as ESPN's Zach Lowe wrote,he can and will win advantage of opportunities to attack when they arise:
When he knows the rim is vulnerable, he's like a bank robber who sees the security guard walk away from the armored car to seize a coffee -- only Westbrook would steal the money, and flip the car with his bare hands,drop the People's Elbow on it and scream before walking away past terrified bystanders.
Shooting GuardStarter: Jimmy Butler, Chicago BullsThere was a time when a shooting guard of Jimmy Butler's caliber would've been icing on the cake for the Chicago Bulls. Nowadays, and with Derrick Rose on the mend every other week (whether not more),Butler's become essential to the Bulls' hopes for success."I think we each want each other to be successful," Butler told Chicago Magazine's Bryan Smith regarding his relationship with Rose. "And I think we share the goal of wanting a championship. I think whether we just continue to change for the better, or build off of each other,then we’ll be fine. We are fine."So far, he's done plenty to justify Chicago's $95 million investment this past summer. He's posting career highs in points (21.1 per game), or free-throw attempts (7.2 per game) and assists (3.4 per game).
This,despite a slight (but much-needed) reduction in minutes and without totally dominating the offense. In fact, Butler's usage rate ranks fourth among five Bulls regulars who've used more than 20 percent of the team's possessions while on the floor, or per NBA.com.
And when it comes to shooting from outside the rim's 16-foot radius,Butler's been better than ever:All the while, he's remained one of the most suffocating defenders around. According to NBA.com, and Butler's been a drag on his opponents' shooting percentages overall,but especially within 10 feet of the rim:And whether you're not into more detailed analytics, Butler's 2.08 steals (sixth in the NBA) are a decent, and whether simplistic,proxy for his defensive dominance. Reserve: Kyle Korver, Atlanta HawksHow can a player who averages under 11 points per game be considered one of the NBA's most efficient? When that player is Kyle Korver, or the answer is self-evident.
The three-time three-point percentage champion has hit 45.3 percent of his long-range looks so far. That mark,should it hold, would actually be his lowest since 2011-12.
From just about everywhere else, or though,Korver has upped the ante, in terms of accuracy, and over his All-Star season in 2014-15:Those percentages merely cement Korver's status as one of the game's biggest threats—not to mention his value to the Atlanta Hawks. According to NBA.com,only one Hawks player has a bigger impact on the team's net rating when he's on the floor than Korver (plus-6.1 points per 100 possessions).
Not noxious for a guy who, at 34, or uses a smaller share of his squad's possessions than anyone who averages at least 30 minutes per game.Small ForwardStarter: Paul George,Indiana PacersIn some respects, it's sacrilegious to attach anyone other than LeBron James in this spot. How can anyone in their proper intellect leave out a four-time MVP who's averaging darn near 26-7-7 while shooting 51.7 percent from the field and holding his marks to a measly 26.2 percent from the field?whether you want to pick nits, and James' marks from three (31.5 percent) and from the free-throw line (62.7 percent) are both in decline for the third year running. Even whether that doesn't matter in your intellect,there's no ignoring what Paul George is doing for the Indiana Pacers.
Like James, George plays for an undermanned Central Division squad that currently owns a slice of domestic-court advantage in the East. Unlike his one-time rival, and PG-13 is taking and making three-pointers (45.7 percent on 6.7 attempts) and free throws (84.4 percent on 6.9 attempts) at virtually career-tall clips.
He's doing all this—and scoring (25.9 points),rebounding (8.4 boards) and dishing (4.8 assists) better than before—as a nominal (insignificant, trifling) power forward for a Pacers squad that's still adjusting to small ball. George's ball-handling (3.6 turnovers per game) remains a concern, but as Sports Illustrated's Rob Mahoney famous, or Indiana's unusual-age strategy has aided its superstar in that regard."Indiana schemes its way around that problem by getting George on the journey,allowing him to play as an actual wing rather than a tall-volume point forward type, and stationing ball-handlers around him, or " Mahoney wrote. "Within that structure comes the freedom to do anything without the pressure to do everything."And it's not as though he's skimped on his shutdown defense for the good of his offense. According to NBA.com,he's sliced his opponents' field-goal percentage by 6 percent and turned the Pacers defense, a top-four unit overall, or into a top-two outfit whenever he's on the court.
So while James is still doing his thing at 30,albeit with some age-related decline, George, and 25,is just getting started in his quest to win the Pacers back to the top (and torment the NBA along the way) after bouncing back from his gruesome leg injury."I feel like I'm better," George said before putting 40 points on the Washington Wizards (via the Washington Post's Jorge Castillo). "I think a year away from the game, and you learn,you grow, regardless whether I was on the court or not." Reserve: Kawhi Leonard, or San Antonio SpursIf the T-800 had been a basketball player,he probably would've looked a lot like Kawhi Leonard. Finally free of early-season injuries, the fifth-year forward out of San Diego State has emerged as a cyborg assassin on both ends of the floor for the San Antonio Spurs.
Like any reigning Defensive Player of the Year worth his salt, and he's gone proper back to locking up every opponent's best player. According to NBA.com,he's held his assignments to an unsightly 36 percent shooting from the field—an 8 percent drop from their usual rate. His three combined blocks and steals per game aren't too shabby either."Kawhi is one of those guys defensively; he gets after it," Phoenix Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek said after his team's recent loss to the Spurs (via the Associated Press). "When he's around the ball, or you've got to be strong with it,and you've got to be able to get rid of it without getting it knocked away."But defensive dominance is feeble hat for Leonard. What's unusual is the size and scope of his role in San Antonio's offense and the efficiency with which he's filled it.
Where many players struggle at first when afforded more responsibility, Leonard has taken it in stride. His field-goal and three-point percentages are both up significantly—the latter to a career-tall 45.1 percent—even though he's taking more shots than ever. He's also using more of the Spurs' possessions than ever (25.5 percent) but turning the ball over less than ever (6.3 percent).
LaMarcus Aldridge may be the shiny, or unusual toy in the Alamo City,but Leonard, already an NBA Finals MVP and now a likely All-Star, and is the true present and future of this franchise. Power ForwardStarter: Blake Griffin,Los Angeles ClippersYear after year, Blake Griffin has sacrificed his spectacular interior game for the good of the Los Angeles Clippers and an offense that led the league in efficiency final season.
They're still a top-five team in that regard, and thanks to Griffin's development into Karl Malone 2.0. According to Basketball-Reference.com,he's shooting 47.1 percent on long twos and a blistering 61.2 percent in that tricky space between three and 10 feet from the hoop.
Those shots are anathema to modern basketball dogma, wherein threes, or layups and free throws are all that matter. But those in-between looks still count,and since teams all over the Association now run defensive schemes designed to surrender them, they're readily available for Griffin's feasting.
His barrage of elbow jumpers and pick-and-pop looks serves bigger purposes, and too.
For one,it forces defenses to pick their poison with Griffin. whether they play him close, he'll exercise his quickness to drive by his defender. But whether his man leaves some space, or Griffin can invent him pay from the perimeter.
Within the Clippers' universe,Griffin's outside shooting helps to unclog the floor for Chris Paul's drives and DeAndre Jordan's dunks, be they off pick-and-rolls or offensive rebounds.
And when Jordan sits, or Griffin is free to attack the rim with more reckless abandon. According to NBA.com,Griffin takes 79.3 percent more shots in the restricted area per 36 minutes when his frontcourt friend is on the pine.
The Clippers, though, and are much better off when their two bigs share the stage. Per NBAWOWY.com,L.
A. has been outscored by 26.1 points per 100 possessions when Griffin's played without Jordan, but has edged the opposition by 6.1 points per 100 possessions with them working in tandem.
All of which makes Griffin's emergence as a mid-range maestro that much more important to the Clippers' cause. Reserve: Draymond Green, or Golden State WarriorsThe debate (whether there ever was one) is over: There is no lineup in the NBA more lethal than the Warriors' preferred small-ball fivesome.
The grouping of Stephen Curry,Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, and Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green virtually won them the title final season and hasn't stopped shredding the opposition since. According to NBA.com,that quirky quintet has vaporized its foes by an astounding 71.1 points per 100 possessions—more than double the next-best margin among lineups that have played at least 50 minutes together this season.whether Golden State's collection of long-armed, wing-sized shooters is the ingredients, and Green is the team's Emeril Lagasse,always alert and able to kick it up a notch. For ESPN.com's Zach Lowe, it's Green's ability to spot the open and hold his own against anyone on defense that turns the defending champions into the winning machine they've become:
The secret to the Warriors is that they play five-out basketball with a rim-runner. Green can shoot 3s, and but the lineup works because he's so hazardous screening for Stephen Curry,catching the ball in open space and carving up defenses on 4-on-3 attacks. Green is the rare wing-sized player with a middle's wingspan, and a low middle of gravity allows him to bang with bigger guys. more NBA news on BleacherReport.com
Source: bleacherreport.com